Business Digest Radio

Three trusted Southern Colorado meteorologists. Decades of experience. A new way to deliver the forecast.
Matt Meister, Merry Matthews, and Rachael Plath have spent decades forecasting and communicating Southern Colorado weather for broadcast television. Now, they’re bringing that deep local knowledge together in a new online format with Peaks2Plains Weather.
The mission is simple: combine experienced meteorologists, powerful forecasting technology, and a deep understanding of Colorado’s unique weather patterns to provide detailed, specific, and reliable forecasts - available 24 hours a day.
Because Colorado weather isn’t one-size-fits-all. What matters in Colorado Springs can be very different from what’s happening in the mountains, on the plains, or along the Front Range.
Peaks2Plains Weather is built to help you understand not just what the forecast says, but what it means for your travel, events, work, and outdoor plans.
Local expertise + powerful technology + Colorado-focused forecasting.
Learn more at https://peaks2plainsweather.com/
#Peaks2PlainsWeather #ColoradoWeather #Meteorology #WeatherForecast #SouthernColorado #Colorado
 

Swisspod, a leading developer of hyperloop technology, has crossed several milestones in transportation during its second U.S. Hyperloop Day event, unveiling the world’s largest hyperloop test track, presenting Aerys 1, its first hyperloop capsule model, and performance of successful record-breaking live tests.
Denis Tudor, Ph.D. is the co-founder and CEO of Swisspod Technologies, a Swiss-American transportation technology company founded in 2019. Swisspod is developing hyperloop-type transportation systems for both freight and eventually passengers—essentially electrically propelled vehicles traveling through low-pressure tubes to dramatically reduce aerodynamic drag.
Tudor is Romanian-born, apparently born in 1994, making him roughly 31–32. His academic credentials are unusually relevant to the company he's running. He graduated valedictorian from Politehnica University of Bucharest in 2017, earning his bachelor's degree in electronics/telecommunications engineering. He subsequently went to Switzerland's prestigious École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), where he completed a Ph.D. focused specifically on the optimal design and operation of hyperloop transportation systems.
He remains associated with EPFL as a scientific consultant in its Distributed Electrical Systems Laboratory.
Why Pueblo matters
This is where I think Tudor becomes particularly relevant to The Business Signal/Digest.
Swisspod isn't merely talking about Colorado as a future market. Pueblo is becoming one of the central proving grounds for its technology.
Swisspod is developing its major U.S. test facility in Pueblo in partnership with MxV Rail and PuebloPlex. Tudor has described it as a full-scale facility intended to validate long-haul hyperloop operation.
The planned facility occupies roughly 40 acres (162,000 square meters) and uses a closed-loop configuration designed to allow repeated long-distance-equivalent testing rather than simply firing a vehicle down a short straight test track.
And they've moved beyond renderings.
Recent reporting and Tudor's own updates indicate that Swisspod has now operated its full-scale AERYS vehicle in Pueblo, with continuing increases in demonstrated speed. Tudor's current profile reports 146 km/h (about 91 mph) for AERYS 1 and says the company is developing AERYS 2, a fully contactless vehicle intended for substantially higher speeds and eventually incorporating a passenger seat.
https://swisspod.com 

A 200-year-old Argentine winemaking legacy has crossed the Andes - and entered the American Rockies through Colorado Springs.
 
The Business Signal sat down with respected banking executive and community leader, Shawn Gullixson, whose unexpected journey into Argentina’s wine industry began at a Harvard executive course in Cambridge.
Shawn met Finca Los Maza owner Alex Campbell. Later, Shawn and his wife, Mattie, traveled to Argentina  and fell in love with its people, hospitality and deeply rooted wine culture.
 
Mr. Gullixson is now an owner and partner in the historic vineyard, nestled in the Uco Valley at the foot of the Andes. For nearly two years, he and his partners have worked to build a direct business bridge between Argentina and Colorado - bringing Finca Los Maza’s highly rated wines, including its celebrated Malbec, to restaurants and retailers throughout the Pikes Peak region.
 
Kick back and enjoy this fascinating conversation about wine, relationships, entrepreneurship and bringing a centuries-old Argentine tradition to a new American audience.  https://www.flmwines.com/
#TheBusinessSignal #FincaLosMaza #ColoradoSprings #ArgentineWine #UcoValley #ColoradoBusiness #KVOR 

More than 600 bills reviewed. Thirty-six identified as having significant implications for Southern Colorado businesses.
Southern Colorado Women’s Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Lola Woloch and Legislative Policy Committee Chair Tammy Cameron - a former Washington, D.C., lobbyist - join host Dirk Hobbs on The So. Colorado Business Signal on KVOR/AM740.
They discuss the legislation local employers should be watching, the Chamber’s growing public-policy role and its expansion into Pueblo County.
Lola also takes us inside the 32nd annual Accolades Awards, celebrating the women whose leadership, entrepreneurship and service are strengthening Southern Colorado’s economy.
Listen and watch: https://socodigest.com/radio
@Southern Colorado Women’s Chamber of Commerce@Lola Woloch@Tammy Cameron@Southern Colorado Business Forum & Digest@KVOR
#SouthernColorado #ColoradoBusiness #SmallBusiness #WomenInBusiness #BusinessLeadership #PublicPolicy #ColoradoLegislature #PuebloCounty #ColoradoSprings #TheBusinessSignal

Dr. Larry Plummer, El Pomar Chair for Business and Entrepreneurship at UCCS joins host Dirk Hobbs to discuss insights on how southern Colorado is uniquely positioned to facilitate and champion the onramp of regional entrepreneurs from every industry. 
Dr. Plummer walks us through the evolution of the region's entrepreneurial ecosystems and the assets in the region that are currently in place and those still in development. He also clarifies what entrepreneurship is and what it is not, and how it is different from innovation. A rich conversation for those seeking to understand how to navigate the entrepreneurial landsape.
"The pursuit of opportunity"
Dr. Larry Plummer is also the Director (Interim), El Pomar Institute for Innovation and Commercialization (EPIIC) and Director, Center for Entrepreneurship at UCCS College of Business. 
To learn more about EPIIC, go to: https://epiic.uccs.edu/. To learn more about the Center for Entrepreneurship, visit: https://business.uccs.edu/resources/entrepreneurship , and to learn more about UCCS's College of Business, go to: https://business.uccs.edu/ 
 

Special Program Director, Luke Doster and Communications Administrator Ariana Pasquini join host, Dirk Hobbs on the new Southern Colorado Business Signal to welcome founders, entrepreneurs, investors, innovators, students, and community leaders as Southern Colorado to come together to celebrate innovation, build meaningful connections, and launch the next generation of great companies. A packed week of interactive presentations, subject matter experts and demos fills next week's event from Monday August 24 through Friday end of day, wrapping up with Pitch Competitions where the audience will join three judges for companies competing for $15,000.00 
This week has so far attracted over 1,000 attendees and will be hosted in several Colorado Springs locations and in Florence, Colorado at the Emergent Campus.
Event hosts include: EPIIC, Exponential Impact, Catalyst Campus, and Emergent Campus
REGISTER: https://socostartupweek.com/ 
ABOUT EPIIC
The University of Colorado’s El Pomar Institute for Innovation and Commercialization (EPIIC) was created in the spring of 2008 at The University of Colorado Colorado Springs (UCCS).  The creation of EPIIC was part of a reorganization of a former campus unit, the Colorado Institute for Technology Transfer and Implementation (CITTI).  CITTI was originally established in 1991 through a grant from the El Pomar Foundation, which was matched by the University of Colorado.

William "Bill" Craighead, Ph.D. - Program Director at UCCS's Economic Forum, joins host Dirk Hobbs on the So. Colorado Business Signal to discuss southern Colorado's overall economic health. 
Dr. Craighead discusses key variables across the spectrum from housing to sales tax, building permits to interest rates and how those factors are playing out in the region. 
UCCS will host the 30th Annual Economic Forum on October 28, 2026 to be held at the Ent Center for the Arts. Registration opens soon: https://business.uccs.edu/economic-forum 
 

Reclaiming Civility co-founders Lisa Brandt and Lori Leander join host Dirk Hobbs on this episode of The Business Signal.
This is The S. Colorado Business Digest's new broadcast programs airing from 1-2pm MST Monday through Friday on AM740/KVOR, then on Spotify and iHeart podcast and YouTube. 
Reclaiming Civility is a Colorado Springs-based organization working to restore something increasingly important in workplaces and communities: the ability to communicate, disagree and resolve conflict while maintaining respect for one another.
Founded by Lisa Brandt and Lori Leander, Reclaiming Civility goes beyond traditional etiquette. Its mission is to help people understand and cultivate civility as a mindset—and then develop practical skills to put it into action. Through training and workshops for businesses, individuals and community organizations, the organization focuses on emotional intelligence, active listening, effective communication, conflict resolution and navigating difficult conversations.
For employers, the business case is particularly relevant: poor communication and unresolved conflict can undermine teamwork, productivity, morale and relationships. Reclaiming Civility seeks to equip leaders and employees with practical tools to build healthier, more respectful and collaborative workplace cultures.
 

For nearly five decades, the Colorado Springs Sports Corporation (Sports Corp) has helped shape what is now one of Southern Colorado's most significant economic drivers - a sports economy generating nearly $300 million annually, supporting more than 2,000 jobs, and creating an estimated $38 million in state and local tax revenue.
Founded to help secure the relocation of the U.S. Olympic Committee from New York to Colorado Springs in 1978, Sports Corp has remained at the forefront of advancing Olympic City USA, attracting premier sporting events, promoting sports tourism, and strengthening the region's quality of life through community engagement.
On this edition of Business Digest Radio, host Dirk Hobbs sits down with Sr. Director of Sports Tourism and Olympic Engagement, Davis Tutt and Director of Marketing & Communications, Rands Keasler for an inside look at Sports Corp's signature events and strategic vision for the remainder of 2026. Together, they discuss how the organization continues to attract world-class competitions, expand sports tourism, and create lasting economic opportunities throughout the Pikes Peak region.
The conversation also highlights several of Sports Corp's marquee events, including the 50th Colorado Springs Labor Day Lift Off, the Pikes Peak Regional Airshow, the Rocky Mountain State Games, the Colorado Springs Sports Hall of Fame, and other events that continue to reinforce Colorado Springs' reputation as one of America's premier destinations for sport, competition, and community.
Whether you're a business leader, community partner, sports enthusiast, or simply interested in the future of our regional economy, this is a conversation that showcases why sport has become one of Southern Colorado's most powerful engines for growth.
Learn more about Sports Corp and their events here: https://sportscorp.org  | EVENTS: https://www.coloradospringssports.org/events/

On Business Digest Radio, host Dirk Hobbs sat down with Mike Grady, Senior Vice President of Western Markets for Wings Credit Union (formerly Ent Credit Union), and Annie Snead, Vice President of Community Outreach, to discuss the strategic merger between the two respected credit unions—an integration many in the financial sector have described as a model for merger success.
Grady and Snead shared insights into how the transition is unfolding for members, employees, and leadership teams, emphasizing a deliberate focus on culture, communication, and continuity of service. Both noted that preserving member trust while aligning systems, operations, and organizational values has been central to the process.
The conversation also highlighted the importance of maintaining strong community engagement across Colorado, ensuring the combined organization remains deeply invested in the people and businesses it serves while positioning for long-term growth and expanded impact.
https://wingco.com | https://socodigest.com/#radio 
#BusinessDigestRadio, #WingsCreditUnion, #EntCreditUnion, #CreditUnions, #FinancialServices, #CommunityBanking, #Leadership. #BusinessLeadership, #SouthernColorado, #ColoradoBusiness